In this series we’ll take a fresh look at resources and how they are used. We’ll go beyond natural resources like air and water to look at how efficiency in raw materials can boost the bottom line and help the environment. We’ll also examine the circular economy and design for reuse — with an eye toward honoring those resources we do have.

While changes at home can’t solve the many environmental crises we face today, they can sure help. Through this series, we’ll explore how initiatives like curbside compost pick-up, rebates on compost bins, and efficient appliances can help families reduce their impact without breaking the bank.

Despite decades -- centuries even -- of global efforts, slavery can still be found not just on the high seas, but around the world and throughout various supply chains. Through this series on forced labor, sponsored by C&A Foundation, we’ll explore many different types of bonded and forced labor and highlight industries where this practice is alive and well today.

In this series we examine how companies should respond to national controversy like police violence and the BLM movement to best support employees and how can companies work to improve equality by increasing diversity in their ranks directly.

Compost is often considered a panacea for the United States’ tremendous food waste problem. Indeed, composting is a much better option than putting spoiled food in a garbage can destined for a landfill.

China’s installed wind capacity is the second largest in the World, and their growth rates continue to dwarf those of developed nations. Yet wind energy still makes up a very small portion of Chinese energy production because 1/3 of it isn’t connected to the grid, and the other 2/3rds are heavily restricted. The problems hint at policy, management, and planning flaws. First, China’s prime wind real estate is in the North, and its main energy demand is in the South. Second, although China’s installed wind capacity grew by 113% over the last year, and now out ranks the US, 1/3 of this wind power cannot access the grid. Lastly, in Northeastern China alone, it is estimated that $5.4 billion USD worth of profits were lost last year due to installed wind capacity that was either not used or not grid-connected. So what’s happening behind these numbers?

China is a huge country, and within it lays one of the world’s richest wind energy hot spots. Inner Mongolia and Northern China house incredible wind resources, and very few people relative to the more populous south. As the Chinese population continues to grow and become increasingly industrialized, their energy demands have skyrocketed. One of the missing pieces of the renewables puzzle in terms of wind energy for China is connectivity. Transmission lines that transfer energy harvested from the wind-rich North to the energy-poor South are sparse and already functioning at full capacity.

Another major piece of the puzzle is wind energy management. In small local grids, like many located in the North of China, wind energy is a new and unpredictable source of energy. Operators are warned not to allow more than 10% of the grid capacity to come from wind power. Fears of the energy grids collapsing run rampant. Yet the new technology continues to be hooked up to small local stations that are not prepared nor educated in wind energy or mixed energy management. For example, Northern winters require the greatest amount of energy for heating and cooking. Yet, since wind is considered unstable relative to coal, it is severely restricted during the winter months. Ironic, since winter produces the best wind for harvesting of the year.

These two major issues, connectivity and management, both hinder China from reaching its desired renewables targets. They also point toward larger underlying issues concerning transmission line responsibility, authority over wind project approval, and Chinese energy policy. This series on Chinese Wind Energy will take a closer look at the wind energy issues specific to China, as it relates to climate change and models for wind-rich developing nations.

Tiffany Finley started her sustainability journey while camping in the Boundary Waters in Northern Minnesota. Since then she has been dedicated to reconciling the industrial and the natural world views to create a hybridized mode of development toward sustainability. Majoring in Environmental Management in the US and then obtaining a Master's of Science in Strategic Leadership toward Sustainability in Sweden, she takes an analytical view based on science. She works with non-profits, small to medium businesses, and government organizations to strategize for sustainability in their respective sectors. Honored to join the writing cast at Triple Pundit, she looks forward to covering a wide range of sustainability news.

One response

Although it is difficult to make confident conclusions about the Chinese, because they are so non-transparent, it is pretty easy to suspect their motives. So as to not be deemed inactive on the global stage regarding renewable energy, they have installed enough capacity to make the claims you cite about position in the world rankings. However, their lack of overall, cohesive policy and the physical lack of reasonable integration suggest they do not take the effort seriously as a means of producing power in lieu of other means.